Nazi Bombs, Torpedoes and Mines: How Marine Life Prosper on Abandoned Weapons

In the brackish sea off the Germany's shoreline rests a graveyard of Nazi bombs, torpedoes and naval mines. Dumped from barges at the end of the second world war and forgotten about, numerous weapons have become matted together over the decades. They create a rusting carpet on the shallow, muddy seafloor of the Bay of Lübeck in the western part of the Baltic.

Over the decades, the explosive stockpile was ignored and forgotten about. A increasing amount of tourists came to the coastal areas and calm waters for water sports, kiteboarding and amusement parks. Below the waves, the weapons deteriorated.

We initially expected to see a lifeless zone, with no life because it was all toxic, explains a scientist.

When the initial researchers went searching to see what they were affecting to the ecosystem, researchers anticipated finding a lifeless zone, with nothing living there because it was all contaminated, explains Andrey Vedenin.

What they discovered amazed them. Vedenin recalls his scientists shouting with surprise when the submersible first relayed pictures. This was a memorable occasion, he notes.

Thousands of sea creatures had settled amid the munitions, forming a regenerated marine community denser than the ocean bottom surrounding it.

This marine city was testament to the persistence of life. Truly surprising how much life we find in areas that are considered dangerous and dangerous, he states.

In excess of 40 sea stars had clustered on to one exposed chunk of explosive material. They were dwelling on steel casings, ignition chambers and storage boxes just a short distance from its volatile core. Fish, crabs, anemones and mussels were all found on the historic weapons. You could compare it with a coral reef in terms of the quantity of creatures that was there, states Vedenin.

Remarkable Creature Concentration

An average of more than forty thousand organisms were dwelling on every square metre of the munitions, experts reported in their study on the discovery. The adjacent region was much less diverse, with only 8,000 individuals on every square metre.

It is ironic that items that are meant to kill everything are drawing so much life, says Vedenin. You can see how the natural world evolves after a major disaster such as the World War II and how, in some way, marine life finds its way to the most hazardous areas.

Man-made Structures as Marine Habitats

Man-made structures such as sunken vessels, offshore windfarms, drilling platforms and undersea pipes can offer substitutes, compensating for some of the removed marine environment. This investigation shows that explosives could be comparably advantageous – the explosion of life on those in the Lübeck Bay is expected to be repeated in different areas.

Between 1946 and the post-war period, 1.6 million tonnes of weapons were discarded off the Germany's shoreline. Countless of individuals transported them in boats; some were dropped in designated sites, the remainder just discarded at sea during transport. This is the initial instance scientists have studied how marine life has adapted.

Worldwide Instances of Ocean Transformation

• In the US, decommissioned oil and gas structures have transformed into coral reefs
• Submerged vessels from the World War I have become homes for marine life along the Potomac River in the state of Maryland
• Tank tracks that have become habitat to coral off Asan in the Pacific island

These places become even more important for marine life as the marine environments are increasingly denuded by fishing, seafloor dredging and boat mooring. Shipwrecks and explosive disposal locations effectively act as protected areas – they are not national parks, but nearly any kind of anthropogenic disturbance is prohibited, states Vedenin. Consequently a numerous of organisms that are typically uncommon or declining, such as the cod fish, are flourishing.

Coming Factors

Anywhere warfare has happened in the past 100 years, surrounding seas are typically strewn with munitions, states Vedenin. Millions of tonnes of explosive material lie in our oceans.

The locations of these munitions are poorly documented, partially because of national borders, secret defense data and the fact that records are buried in historic archives. They pose an explosion and security danger, as well as risk from the ongoing emission of poisonous compounds.

As the German government and other countries start removing these artifacts, researchers hope to protect the marine communities that have established in their vicinity. In the Bay of Lübeck weapons are currently being extracted.

It would be wise to substitute these iron structures remaining from weapons with some safer, various non-dangerous structures, like maybe artificial reefs, says Vedenin.

He now wishes that what occurs in the Bay of Lübeck sets a example for replacing material after munitions removal elsewhere – because even the most destructive explosives can become framework for ocean ecosystems.